Fruit flies are an irritating nuisance around the house, in your kitchen or bathroom. This irritation is magnified a thousand fold in a restaurant, where the very last thing you need is insects flying around!
These little insects cannot bite, so they are no direct threat to us – but their habits of flying around and landing on decaying matter then landing elsewhere can spread germs and bacteria.
This problem is the very last thing you need in a restaurant, where everything must stay spotlessly clean to prevent customer illness, and potentially losing future custom or even being shut down.
Read on to learn more on how to get rid of fruit flies in a restaurant.
What are fruit flies?
Fruit flies are tiny; much smaller than house flies, and their buzzing around can be very annoying, even without the fact that they can spread germs around.
They breed very quickly, and it can be a matter of days before a few fruit flies have turned into a few hundred or more. They also have similar eating habits to house flies – they like rotting organic matter, especially fruit (hence the name)!
They also go for anything that has alcohol or sugar, so leftover beer and wine are a big attractant for them, which makes these little pests the bane of a restaurant owner’s life.
Why do fruit flies like restaurants so much?
The answer is simple: food. In a place that spends all its time making, preparing and serving food, you are bound to encounter a fly or two.
Fruit flies also love leftover wine and beer, so with this love of alcohol they are more likely to be found in a restaurant than just about anywhere else, with the availability of leftover food and drink.
So, how to get rid of fruit flies in a restaurant?
Luckily, there are a few solutions you can try:
1. Keep everything clean
First and foremost, keep everything sparklingly clean. Remove any scraps of vegetable and fruit matter that may go off, and ditch any leftover alcohol. Scrub all surfaces to make sure there are no traces of food lying around.
2. Rinse out regularly
Rinse out empty wine and beer glasses if they are not going to be washed straight away – fruit flies have an amazing sense of smell, and, like university students on a Friday night, even a whiff of alcohol will bring them swarming.
3. Check the drains
Flies like warm, damp places to hide and breed, so make sure your drains are clean and clear. Regular doses of strong cleaning agents like bleach will help reduce the problem.
4. Bleach the bins after you empty them
Flies will be attracted to the smell of gone off food, so remove these smells completely by cleaning the bins very thoroughly.
5. Use a fly trap
These sticky strips emit a smell that flies find irresistible; simply hang a few of these around the kitchen to get rid of any unwanted pests.
Make sure that you keep these away from any food preparation areas, and change them regularly.
6. Make a swimming pool trap
You can make a swimming pool trap, using leftover red wine – simply add a splash of the wine to a disposable container, add a little dish soap, then cover the container with cling film.
Poke holes in the film, large enough for the flies to get through, then wait. They will be attracted to the smell of the wine, and will drown as soon as they touch the liquid.
7. Try vinegar
Vinegar also works well for this trick – add some vinegar, sugar and dish soap to a container filled with water.
Place this wherever the flies are most plentiful, then sit back and wait while they drown themselves.
8. Hire an exterminator
This sounds like a big step, but if you have an infestation of fruit flies in a restaurant it can be very damaging for your business.
If you cannot get on top of the problem yourself, you will need some professional help to rid yourself of these pesky intruders.
Final words
Fruit flies are as irritating a nuisance in a restaurant as in a house, but they are far more likely to cause big problems in a restaurant due to food hygiene.
Luckily, you can relatively easily get rid of the problem and keep it gone with these few simple steps outlined above.
